Multisport athletes have been around about as long as sports themselves. The first multisport athletes thought nothing more than having a good time. Again, the pioneers of this dificult venture paved the way for other very gifted athletes. Be it from football to swimming, there were plenty if sports to play.

Okay, lets get this started out with our first athlete:

#10- Kenny Lofton

     While at Arizona, Kenny worked on perfecting his craft that he started from an early age. Lofton played basketball and baseball while a Wildcat in 1988. As it is well known, Arizona has a long lineage of successful basketball teams and went on to the Final Four that year.  They faced Oklahoma, but ended up losing.  As a Wildcat, Kenny was backup Point Guard to Steve Kerr, who went on to a have a great career in the pros.  Kenny's heart, although, was in baseball.  As a Junior, Lofton walked onto the baseball team at AU.  He didn't get too much playing time, but the potential was there and evident for the Astros.  The Houston Astros selected Kenny Lofton in the 17th round of the MLB amateur draft in 1988.  Kenny was at that time one of two players ever to play in the Final Four and play in the MLB.  He still is the second, and last person on that list. 

 #9- Ron Reed

     Ron Reed has planty of options layed out in front of him upon leaving Notre Dame.  Reed was a good basketball player and an equally good baseball player.  Reed decided on basketball right after college and signed with the Detroit Pistons.  Reed played 2 seasons for the Pistons (1965-1967  ) and did quite well.  He averaged 8 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game in his career.  Reed opted for baseball after his second season, signing with the Atlanta Braves in 1967.  Reed was selected to the NL All-Star team that year as a rookie pitcher .  His nearly 20 year career was highlighted by his tenure with the Philadelphia Phillies.  In 1980, Reed was a crucial part to the Phillies World Series win.  Philadelphia toppled the Kansas City Royals in six exciting games.  He and the Phillies returned to the Fall Classic in 1983, but did not come away with a victory.  Reed capped off an amazing sports career in 1984 for the Chicago White Sox and what a career it was. 

#8- Kirk Gibson

     We all remember Gibson's infamous Walk-off homerun against Dennis Eckersly, probably the greatest moment of Gibson's career.  But his career was not limited to baseball.  Kirk Gibson was offered a scholarship to Michigan State as a football player and gladly accepted.   Kirk was a Wide Reciever and ran the crispest routes and caught the ball as well as just about anyone.  He set the yardage, receptions, and touchdown records while at Michigan State and was an All-American on top of that!  He was so impressive that both the Detroit Tigers baseball team and the St. Louis Cardinals football team drafted him.  Gibson chose baseball and helped the Tigers to their 1984 World Series title.  Gibson could have potentially been a star player in football, but thankfully for Gibson, and Jack Buck (announcer of the Gibson homerun: "I dont believe what I just saw!"), Gibson selected baseball.  Now Eckersly would probably disagree.  Currently, Gibson is the bench coach for the NLCS bound Diamondbacks.

#7- John Elway

     Elway was a standout football player at Stanford, but we all know how that turned out, so I won't go into that area of Elway's career.  John Elway was a tremendous baseball player coming out of High School as well.  He so good that he was picked by the Royals coming out of Grenada Hills High School and once again as the Yankees top pick of the Yankees in 1981 after college.  In the Yankees farm system, Elway hit .314 with 24 homeruns to lead the team.  He was also drafted by the Baltimore Colts with the first pick in the 1983 draft.  The Colts traded Elway and his five-year 5 million dollar contract to Denver because they feared he would choose baseball.  Now, how many players have been a first-round pick in the MLB and the number one pick in the NFL?  Why, only Elway holds that prestigous title. 

#6- Dave Winfield

     Winfield was one of the greatest baseball players of all time.  But how many teams could have gone to a Hall of Fame with?  Four individual teams in three sports.  Dave Winfield was drafted by the NBA's Atlanta Hawks, ABA's Utah Stars, the MLB's San Diego Padres, and the Minnesota Vikings in the NFL.  Winfield excelled at baseball and basketball while at Minnesota, yet was drafted by the NFL?  Yes, the Vikings sent scouts to a few of his baseball games and later basketball games to check out this amazing prospect.  Evidentally, they weren't the only ones who noticed.  Winfield went on to have a Hall of Fame career with the Padres, but who knows his potential with basketball and football.  But let me tell you this, I would be scared to find out.

#5- Jackie Robinson

     Jackie Robinson was a stand-out athlete during his college career at UCLA.  He was a football star and superb at Track and Field.  Robinson chose baseball, thank goodness, but he could have very well been just as great in basketball on top of that.  Robinson became the first athlete in UCLA history to letter in four different sports in the same year.  Until 1947, he was the first and only person to ever be selected to play in the college football and basketball all-star games.

#4- Deion Sanders

     No one ever has greater ability at his position than Deion "Primetime" Sanders.  He had size perfect for jump-balls and game-breaking speed.  He was electric when returning punts and played safety in the later parts of his career with the Baltimore Ravens.  He also was a spectacular player in baseball.  He would likely have been a great player had he dedicated his full attention to baseball instead of nine years during his football career.  Yet, Deion still relied on his athletic ability to do what he did best- walk the walk and talk the talk.  Sometimes I wonder if that phrase was spoken with Deion in mind.  Deion is the only man ever to play in both the Super Bowl and the World Series ever and a football and baseball game on the same day.  They called him Neon for a reason, and you would know why if you ever listened to him.

#3- Bo Jackson

     The Auburn Tigers certainly landed a blue-chip prospect when Bo Jackson committed to Auburn prior to the 1982 season.  At Auburn, Bo was an outstanding football and baseball player, as well as a star at track and field.  He was chosen first in the NFL draft, but decided baseball was better to start off with.  Jackson was the MVP of the 1989 MLB All-Star game while setting records for the Royals.  Bo later tried to play baseball and football (for the Raiders) and was bound to create a friendly competition with Deion, a fellow baseball and football vet, until multiple hip injuries subsequently ended the majority of both his careers.  His stats may not be validation to place him this high, but when he was healthy, you would be surprised to see him this low on such a list.

#2- Jim Brown

     The Cleveland Browns didn't know how lucky they were when they selected Jim Brown with the first pick in 1957.  He set the NFL rushing record in only 9 years of professional football for Cleveland and shockingly, retired after only those short nine years.  At Syracuse, Brown was a bonafide star in track, basketball, football, and lacrosse.  Yes, witnesses of Jim's games concluded that he was the best ever to pick up a Lacrosse stick and still is.  Brown would have likely went pro in lacrosse had their been a league back then.  Art Modell bought the Cleveland Browns in 1961 for 4 million, and only $250,000 of his own money.  Art made a great investment, and a lucky one too had there not been a lacrosse league.  Brown led the Syracuse Orange LAX team to an undefeated season in 1957 and has been inducted into thw lacrosse Hall of Fame since then.

#1- Jim Thorpe

     The top two is an All-Jim duo elite in their respective sports.  Thorpe was the most versatile athlete in sports period.  He was a great football player, played Major League Baseball, had an exceptional basketball career, and even represented the U.S. in the Olympics, winning gold in the decathalon and pentathalon.  Thorpe was the most versatile sportsman in the history of sports and has been rumored to be a natural at any sport he tried and doing it with ease.  Although that is just a rumor, it would not surprise me one bit.

Honorable Mentions

Wilt Chamberlain

     Wilt, as we all know, was the most dominant player of his era, but there is something even more remarkable than dominating your sport day in and day out: Wilt was recruited by George Allen to be football.  Now, you would think Wilt would be the secret weapon at wide receever, right?  Wrong.  Wilt was intended to be a special teams stud, positioned by the goal post on long field goals to jump up and block them.  That idea, as grand as it was, never materialized.

Tom Glavine

     Tom Glavine recently reached 300 wins, but he could have just as well had recently reached his 500th goal.  The L.A. Kings picked Glavine in the 4th round.  Glavine was selected over L.A. Kings and hockey great Luc Robitialle.  Glavine was asked about why he picked baseball over hockey recently, he joked: "I had all my own teeth and I wanted to keep it that way."  Interesting since he recently lost a tooth in a car crash.

Tom Zibikowski

     Notre Dame strong safety picked the right position, although he hits like a linebacker.  Zibikowski, in addition to being a top NFL prospect, is an accomplished boxer.  As an amateur, Tom has an astonishing record of 67-13.  His debut was covered by ESPN analysts, remarking his quick knockout capability.  He is also a great punt returner that rarely calls fair catch.  Coincidence?  Nah.

At Least They Tried

Michael Jordan

     Jordan is the greatest and most electrifying basketball player to ever step foot on a court.  On the baseball diamond, not so much.  Jordan retired at the peak of his game in 1994 to persue his passion: baseball.  He bounced around in the White Sox Minor League system and came out of retirement, a reacuring theme, in 1996 to win three more NBA titles. 

Charles Barkley

     Well, at least he was good at basketball.  The "Round Mound of Rebound" was a Hall of Fame power forward.  In golf, Barkley, or so he says, used to be fine until he saught the advice of a coach.  "Well, I took a lesson  My problem was balance.  So this teacher, whose name I'm glad I can't remember, told me to pause at the top.  It took a mind of its own after that.  I've been to a hypnotist to fix it.  All he did was make me sleepy."  Barkley has one of the worst golf swings ever, yet still is a regular at celebrity golf opens.  He does it for the fun of the game, but I think its more fun to cover his celebrity golf opens. 

Shocking Trivia

How many people have hit a homerun and scored a touchdown in the same NFL season?

Keep Thinking....Thinking.....Thinking......Time!

Okay, 6 players have accomplished this feat and it has been done 7 times. 

Rod Badgro- 1930 Browns and 1930 Giants

Steve Filipowicz- 1945 Giants and 1945 Giants

Bo Jackson- 1987 Royals and 1987 Raiders

Ace Parker- 1937 A's and 1937 Dodgers

Pid Purdy- 1927 Reds and 1927 Packers

Deion Sanders- 1994 Braves and 1994 49ers

Deion Sanders- 1995 Reds and 1995 Cowboys

Okay, if that doesn't prove how elite this group of athletes is, I'm not sure what will.  This is a group of the most versatile, agile, and athletic players ever born.  Playing one sport well is extremley hard, playing two or more is almost impossible.

Oh, and sorry it's so long!